


A Family of Fairies

by LadyMystery



Category: Fairy Tail, InuYasha - A Feudal Fairy Tale
Genre: F/M, May Be Slow to Update, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Relationships to be Revealed, WIP, i don't know how to tag
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-01
Updated: 2020-10-13
Packaged: 2021-03-07 00:21:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 18,376
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26227837
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadyMystery/pseuds/LadyMystery
Summary: A wish made upon the completed Shikon Jewel changed the world as everyone knew it.  Thrown far into an unfamiliar future, Kagome is left adrift, cut off from everything and everyone she once knew and loved.  Unable to connect with people the way she once did, Kagome cuts herself off from society and retreats within herself, putting up walls around her heart between her and the rest of the world.  Until one day, while wandering through a forest, she is stumbled upon by Lucy Heartfilia, a fresh young runaway with dreams of magic.  Watch as, under Lucy’s light and with the help of others they meet along the way, the walls separating Kagome from everyone else are slowly torn down, and she finds herself surrounded by family and friends once more.
Comments: 2
Kudos: 16





	1. Meeting Natsu

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

Lucy stalked down the streets of Hargeon, grumbling about stingy shop owners who must have been blind, knocking only 1,000 Jewel off the price at the sight of _her_ sexy body, when a familiar figure caught her eye. It was a young woman, standing turned slightly away from Lucy, instead gazing out to the port and the ocean beyond it.

She wore a short, sleeveless kimono dress, the skirt flaring out around her hips and stopping just before it reached mid-thigh. It was completely black apart from a strip of sapphire blue running along the neckline and the hem, and a large, pink crescent moon upon her upper back. A wide blue obi, covering almost her whole stomach, held the garment closed and was tied into a large bow at the back, the tail ends of which dangled down around her knees. A smaller, pink sash was wrapped around the middle of the blue obi, with no knot or bow to be seen. Detached black sleeves were tied around the middle of her upper arms with blue ribbon. The sleeves became progressively wider as they stretched towards her wrists and the last few inches were a solid sapphire blue with pink crests of cherry blossoms inside hexagons scattered about it. Her feet were encased in simple, flat-soled black ankle boots and black socks stretched up to just above her knees. The top few inches of the socks were also blue with the same crest of cherry blossoms within hexagons in pink upon them. 

“Kagome, hey!” Lucy called out, waving her hand in the air.

The woman turned towards Lucy’s voice, revealing gem-like, sapphire blue eyes and soft pink lips. Midnight tresses, so black it was almost blue, framed her heart-shaped face and tumbled down her back in gentle waves. Two necklaces hung from the slender column of her throat – a black choker held a pink crescent moon pendant against the hollow between her collarbones, and a silver chain disappeared under her clothes, hiding whatever may be hanging on the end of it. The glint of a silver charm bracelet could be seen peeking from her left sleeve, and upon her shoulder sat a cream-coloured cat with black markings, red eyes, and two tails.

“Hey, Lucy,” Kagome greeted once the blonde was in speaking range while the cat on her shoulder mewed a hello. “Did you find what you were looking for?”

Side by side, it was obvious that Lucy was the taller of the two girls by several inches, but Kagome’s figure was no less voluptuous despite the lack of height. Together, they were a pair of absolute knockouts.

“Hi, Kirara,” Lucy gave the cat a quick pat before turning her attention to Kagome’s question. “Kind of,” Lucy answered. “Can you believe there is only _one_ magic shop in all of Hargeon? And the store isn’t even that big! And the shopkeeper there is a blind idiot, I swear. Still, it wasn’t a total waste. Check it out!” Lucy held up a silver key. “I got the key to Canis Minor! Oh, I can’t wait to form a contract!” Lucy clutched the key to her chest, a beaming smile on her face.

Kagome smiled at her exuberant friend and opened her mouth to say something in reply when screams from further in town caught the two’s attention.

“What’s going on there?” Lucy asked, concerned.

“It doesn’t sound distressed,” Kagome frowned thoughtfully. “Instead it sounds like… fangirls?”

The two shared a curious look before Lucy took off towards the clamour to investigate, Kagome close behind her.

Arriving in a square closer to the centre of town, the two girls reached a crowd of young women surrounding someone at its centre while screaming about a Salamander. The two exchanged a confused look before Lucy’s eyes seemed to light with realisation before diving into the crowd, taking advantage of her slim figure and liberal use of elbows to make her way to the front. A few seconds after she popped out of the crowd, Kagome appeared beside her, hair slightly dishevelled and Kirara cradled protectively in her arms to shield her from the craziness around them.

“Lucy?” Kagome half-shouted to be heard over the screaming girls. “What’s going on?”

“Oh, Kagome, I don’t believe it! It’s Salamander! That super powerful fire wizard I was telling you about!!” 

As Lucy seemed to lose her sanity and joined in with the screaming, lovesick fangirls, Kagome frowned as she felt a subtle force trying to pull at her mind. Before she could do anything, however, a shout interrupted them.

“Hey, Igneel! Igneel!! It’s me!” yelled a pink-haired young man as he came ploughing through the crowd, knocking slightly into Lucy on his way past before pulling up short at the sight of the man before him.

“Who the heck are you?” the young man mumbled, slouching in disappointment before wandering off before the supposed ‘Salamander’ could even answer, uninterested since it wasn’t the one he was looking for. This action, however, seemed to highly offend the man’s fangirls, and they trampled all over the poor teen in retaliation.

The ‘Salamander’ mollified the angry girls before inviting them all to a soiree on his yacht and leaving in a highly dramatic fashion. The crowd of girls quickly dispersed, gossiping about what dresses they would wear to the party, leaving just Kagome, Lucy, and the trampled boy in the now-empty square.

“Who the heck was that guy?” the pink-haired teen grumbled while still sitting on the ground where the hoard of fangirls had left him.

“I don’t know, but he was a real creep,” Lucy said, approaching the boy with a cheerful wave. “Thank you for your help. I’m Lucy, by the way.”

“I’m Natsu, and this is my good friend Happy,” Natsu introduced himself. “And you are?” he asked, turning to the girl standing beside Lucy.

“My name is Kagome, and this is Kirara,” Kagome said before looking at Natsu in slight concern. “Are you ok? Girls can be rather vicious, fangirls especially so.”

“Nah, I’m fine,” Natsu waved off Kagome’s concern before turning back to Lucy. “Now, what were you saying about help?”

“Right! Why don’t I treat us all to lunch while I explain?” Lucy offered.

Natsu and Happy had no complaints as to that idea so the slightly odd group of three people and two cats made their way to a nearby restaurant. While the two boys gorged themselves on the food available, Lucy explained about how the man at the square was using charm magic – a type of magic that attracts people to a person against their own will, and as such had been banned for years. Lucy herself had fallen under the man’s charm until Natsu barging in had snapped her out of it.

That explained the tug Kagome had felt on her mind earlier. Thankfully, due to her many experiences after her fifteenth birthday and her own innate abilities, Kagome had a fairly strong resistance to mental magics like that. It would take something far stronger to successfully charm _her_.

Lucy then got side-tracked down a tangent, talking about how she was also a wizard, albeit one that had yet to join a guild, and that it was her dream to join Fairy Tail. While Lucy prattled on about what guilds were and how amazing Fairy Tail was, Kagome listened quietly with an indulgent smile, occasionally deflecting a stray piece of food sent flying by Natsu and Happy’s exuberant eating.

When Lucy’s excited babble finally wound down, Kagome gently steered the conversation back on track. “So, I heard you yelling about someone named Igneel earlier,” she asked Natsu. “Are you trying to find him?”

“Yeah, we heard a rumour that a Salamander would be coming through this town, so we came here to see him,” Natsu mumbled around a mouthful of food. “Turns out it was just somebody else. I bet that poser can’t even breathe fire like a real dragon,” he grumbled.

“Wait, I’m confused,” Lucy interrupted. “So, your friend Igneel looks like a dragon?”

“No, you got it all wrong,” Natsu corrected. “He doesn’t look like a dragon, he is one.”

“Huh?!” Lucy exclaimed, completely dumbfounded. “Why would a fire dragon show up in the middle of town?!”

Natsu and Happy both opened their mouths to reply, only to freeze in realization, causing Kagome to let out a small laugh at their twin faces of utter shock.

“As interesting as this has been, we should probably get going, Lucy,” Kagome gently interrupted.

“Yeah, you’re right.” The two girls stood up from their seats, leaving some money on the table to pay for the meal and Natsu and Happy still frozen where they sat.

“Thank you, please come again,” a waitress went to bow the two girls out the door but instead ended up staring in shock at something over their shoulders.

Turning to see what she was looking at, Kagome’s eyebrow rose while Lucy started to twitch at the sight of Natsu and Happy bowing dogeza-style on the floor.

“Thank you for the food!” they chorused.

“Cut it out, you’re embarrassing us,” Lucy snapped at them. “Look, it’s fine, alright? You guys helped me out earlier, so let’s just call it even, ok?”

That apparently wasn’t going to work, however, as the boys claimed they weren’t actually _trying_ to help her out. They felt they at least owed her something. Natsu then seemed to have an epiphany.

“Oh, I know. Here, this is for you,” he said, smiling and holding out an autograph from that Salamander poser from earlier.

“No way!” Lucy snapped, irate, turning on her heel and stomping out the door.

Kagome just muffled a snicker at the drama before tossing a final wave at the two boys and following after her blonde friend.

* * *

“Well, that was certainly interesting,” Kagome commented as she and Lucy made their way around town.

“Yeah, no joke,” Lucy agreed, before seemingly sinking into thought. “Hey, Kagome?” she asked somewhat hesitantly. “I know I must have told you about a million times by now about how I want to join Fairy Tail, but you’ve never said anything about what you want to do. So, what do you want to do, Kagome?”

Kagome remained quiet for a moment, sensing that her friend wanted a serious and _honest_ answer, but unsure of what to say.

“I… I don’t really know,” Kagome eventually answered softly, mood becoming slightly melancholy. “Before I met you, last year, I had been a wanderer for… a very long time. I had no purpose, no destination, no friends or family. I just… was. Before you came stumbling upon me in that forest clearing, completely lost and slightly scared, I… can't remember the last time I interacted with anyone aside from Kirara.”

Lucy looked slightly heartbroken for her friend, completely unexpecting this depressing answer to her supposed-to-be-innocent question. Before she could say anything in an attempt at comfort, however, Kagome continued.

“Originally, I was just going to help you find the nearest town and then be on my way, back to aimlessly wandering the forests. But then… I don’t know. There was just something about you, Lucy. So bright and pure and _light_. You talked about magic and your spirits and your dreams for the future, and you were just filled with so much love and _life_ and I… I wanted that. I used to _be_ like that, once upon a time. But, somewhere along the way, I forgot what it meant to _live_. You reminded me, Lucy.”

Kagome locked her grateful, blue orbs with Lucy’s soulful brown, shimmering with unshed tears for her friend’s sudden opening up. “That’s why, even after I helped you make it back to town, I offered that we travel together. And it is my hope that in the future, you will allow me to continue to stay by your side and be your friend, no matter where that path may lead. I am so, so grateful that you ran into me that day, Lucy. Thank you for being my friend.”

“Oh, Kagome,” Lucy cried, throwing her arms around her friend in a desperate hug. “Of course you can stay with me. I’m grateful I ran into you, too, you know. Thank you for being _my_ friend. You will _always_ be my friend, and you will always be welcome wherever I am. Just as you will stand by me, I promise I will stand by you.”

Lucy extended the hug for a little while longer before pulling back to hold Kagome by the shoulders. “So, that being said,” she said, eyes flashing with conviction, “Kagome, if, one day, I _do_ manage to join Fairy Tail, would you like to join with me?”

Kagome’s eyes widened slightly in surprise before they softened in understanding. “If they would be willing to have me as well, then I think I would like that very much. Thank you, Lucy.”

The two girls hugged once more before separating, and Kagome turned the conversation to lighter topics by pointing out the latest edition of Sorcerer Weekly at a nearby newsstand. 

Suitably distracted from the previous, heavy atmosphere, the two bought a copy before settling down on a nearby park bench to flick through it. Lucy, predictably, started once again raving about Fairy Tail, who was heavily featured in the magazine – if only for the trail of destruction that was left in their wake. Unfortunately, their light-hearted mood was interrupted by that Salamander creep from earlier.

“I’ve been looking all over for you,” he said to Lucy with what he no doubt thought was a dashing smirk. “I wanted to personally invite you to the party on my yacht tonight. Your friend can come, too, of course.”

“No thanks, you creep,” Lucy immediately shot down.

“Creep!” he cried, outraged. “Why would you call me a thing like that?”

“Using your charm magic to get people to fall in love with you?” Lucy asked rhetorically. “I guess this goes to show that even famous wizards can be despicable idiots.” The two girls began to walk away from him before he called out to them once again.

“You wish to join the Fairy Tail guild, right?” he asked, trying a different tactic and stopping Lucy in her tracks. “Have you ever heard about Salamander? One of Fairy Tail’s strongest wizards?”

“Of course I have!” Lucy cried. “Wait. You’re telling me you’re him? You’re that Salamander?!”

“That’s right, and if you want to join, I could probably put in a good word for you.”

And Lucy was sold, agreeing to go to his party that night. Anything to join Fairy Tail! It wasn’t until after he left that Lucy realised she had been charmed again.

“Damn that sleazy bastard,” Lucy cursed before noticing something odd. “Kagome? Why didn’t you say anything during all that?”

Kagome’s eyes flicked over to her blonde friend, a slight frown wrinkling her brow. “Tell me something, Lucy. I’ve heard a lot from you about what an amazing guild Fairy Tail is. Sure, they seem a mite destructive, but they also seem inherently _good_ , yes?”

“Yeah, that’s part of why I want to join so much,” Lucy agreed.

“So, would a guild with a reputation like that, really have a famous member like that ‘sleazy bastard’, as you put him?” Kagome asked leadingly.

Dawning realisation could be seen on Lucy’s face. “No, I doubt they would. So, he’s lying about being part of Fairy Tail, then? Is he even a Salamander?!”

“I doubt it,” Kagome confirmed grimly.

“Well, then. I guess we _won’t_ be going to that party, after all,” Lucy huffed, pouting.

“Not necessarily,” Kagome countered, causing Lucy to look at her in confusion. “Something about this whole thing seems _off_ to me. If you’re not against it, I wouldn’t mind investigating a bit.”

“What do you have in mind?” Lucy asked.

“We go to that ‘sleazy bastard’s party and see what’s up. If I’m wrong, and he’s just lying in order to attract some girls and feel like a bigshot for a while, then we just ditch him and enjoy a nice night on the water while the other girls fight over his attention, but if I’m right…” Kagome trailed off.

“Alright, sounds like a plan to me. A nice night on the water sounds lovely, but I’ll keep my keys handy just in case,” Lucy agreed easy.

Kagome shot her friend a thankful smile before the two left to prepare for the night ahead. While Kagome refused to change her outfit, it was unique enough to pass muster. Lucy, however, needed a new dress.

* * *

Later that evening, the two girls were aboard Salamander’s yacht alongside a whole host of other girls. Salamander pulled Lucy aside for a private chat while Kagome remained on deck with the other guests. The two exchanged a brief glance, silently reminding each other to stay on guard, before Lucy disappeared behind a curtain.

Flicking her eyes around the deck, Kagome picked up a flute of champagne before casually making her way to the railing of the ship, leaning with her back against it. This way, she could see everything that was happening on deck, and no one could sneak up behind her.

Bringing the champagne flute to her nose, Kagome pretended to be enjoying the scent of the wine, when really she was checking for any tampering. And it was a good thing she did. The scent was faint – so faint that no human nose could have detected it – but the champagne had definitely been drugged.

Kagome could sense the auras of several men hiding below deck, and she could feel unpleasant eyes watching her and the other girls. Deciding to play along for now, Kagome pretended to take several sips of the tainted champagne, and when the other girls started to drop where they stood, Kagome mimicked them, carefully collapsing against the railing in such a way that she could spring into action at a moment’s notice.

Keeping her eyes closed and her breathing steady, Kagome trained her other senses on what was happening around her. She could sense the men that had been hidden earlier coming up on deck and beginning to move the drugged women down below. Focusing on her hearing, she could also clearly make out Lucy’s conversation with Salamander, that had fast turned into a confrontation. Hearing Lucy cry out in shock and mild pain, followed by Salamander tossing her Keys overboard, Kagome decided enough was enough and it was time to make her move. 

The unfortunate man that was just reaching out to grab her supposedly-unconscious form received a nasty kick to the jaw when Kagome’s leg lashed out suddenly, knocking him out with just one blow. Rolling to her feet and lunging towards the nearest goon in one smooth motion, Kagome managed to knock a second man out before the rest of the gang even realised what was going on.

After that, though, the element of surprise was gone and the rest of the men on the deck all dropped the girls they were holding before charging towards Kagome. Despite being far outnumbered, Kagome easily held her own, being stronger, faster, and a better fighter than any of her opponents. Still, there was a fair number she had to get through and she was worried about Lucy, especially now that she had lost her Gate Keys.

However, that worry faded after she sensed a familiar aura come in from above and crash through the roof of the room Lucy was in. It was that boy from earlier, Natsu. Then, Lucy’s aura was leaving through the same way Natsu had arrived. Looking up, Kagome saw that Lucy was being held by Natsu’s cat, Happy, who now had wings and was flying her away from the ship.

“Kagome!” Lucy cried out in worry at seeing her friend surrounded.

“I’ve got this covered!” Kagome shouted back, catching a fist aimed at her face and using it as leverage to flip the man over her shoulder and into one of his allies. “Find your Gate Keys!”

Kagome dispatched the last of the men that had been on the deck with her right as the group that had been in the room with Lucy came rushing out in an attempt to stop her from getting away. Behind them, Kagome noticed Natsu crouched on the floor, his face completely green, and from the sounds he was making, it was rather clear he was struggling not to hurl.

Clicking her tongue, Kagome leapt high into the air and over the heads of all of the men, attracting all of their attention onto her instead of Lucy, and landed on the ground between them and Natsu, blocking them from attacking him in his incapacitated state.

The men all froze for a moment, stunned that one of the girls was actually awake and fighting back, before bursting into action. Only a few blows had been exchanged, however, before a strange noise made Kagome look up.

“Oh, shit!” she cursed, abandoning her fight and lunging for something to cling onto to survive the massive tidal wave heading right for the ship. 

The ship was tossed about like it was a mere toy, and many of the men went flying overboard, but Kagome clung to the post she had managed to grab like a limpet, and eventually, they were washed ashore.

“Kagome! Natsu! Are you ok?!” Lucy shouted, running towards where the ship lay on its side.

“I’m alright!” Kagome called, pulling herself out of the wreckage before she and Lucy looked up to where Natsu was standing.

“So, you claim to be a member of the Fairy Tail guild?” Natsu asked seriously. “Let me get a closer look at your face.”

Kagome and Lucy watched as Natsu calmly batted two of Salamander’s henchmen away while Happy revealed that Natsu was also a wizard.

“My name is Natsu. I’m a Fairy Tail wizard. And I’ve never seen you before!” Natsu declared, throwing off his jacket to show the guild mark on his shoulder.

Sensing the confidence and strength in Natsu’s aura, Kagome decided he had the situation well in hand and started quietly evacuating the now-awake girls from the ruins of the ship, although she _did_ raise an eyebrow in surprise when Natsu literally _ate fire_. 

Kagome managed to get the last of the girls out just before Natsu’s Fire Dragon Roar destroyed what was left of the ship. That done, she moved back to Lucy’s side just as Natsu went to absolute town on the fake Salamander, now revealed to be called Bora.

Kagome listened with half an ear to Happy and Lucy’s conversation as Happy explained how Natsu’s magic worked, most of her attention on the fight happening before her. Absently, her arms came up to cradle Kirara as the two-tailed cat moved from where she’d been hiding under Kagome’s hair for the duration of the evening, softly stroking the cat’s fur in a silent apology for being tossed around so much earlier.

“Oh, wow, that was amazing,” Lucy breathed once Bora had been completely taken out. “But he completely overdid it!”

“Hmm,” Kagome hummed in agreement, observing the largescale destruction around them. “He doesn’t really know the word ‘restraint’, does he?”

“Wait, is that the army?!” Lucy cried, noticing movement from the town.

“Oh, crap!” Natsu cried, grabbing hold of Lucy and Kagome’s wrists, one in each hand, before taking off and pulling them along with him. “We’ve got to get out of here!”

“Hey! Hey! Where the heck are you taking us!” Lucy protested, struggling to remain on her feet with Natsu pulling her along like that.

“Just come on! You said that you wanted to join the Fairy Tail guild, didn’t you?” Natsu turned a beaming smile on the blonde. “So let’s go!”

A look of stunned shock briefly crossed Lucy’s face before it morphed into a matching grin. Turning that same smile onto Kagome and getting a smaller, but no less happy, one in return, the three raced off together, leaving the destruction of Hargeon and the irate army members far behind.


	2. Saving Macao

Natsu, Lucy and Kagome stood before a large building in the town of Magnolia while Kirara perched on Kagome’s shoulder and Happy hovered above their heads. While Lucy gazed up at the large Fairy Tail symbol in awe, marking the building as the Fairy Tail guild hall, Natsu kicked in the doors with a loud cry of, “We made it back alive!”

“We’re home!” Happy greeted everyone inside, in case someone had somehow managed to miss Natsu’s dramatic entrance.

Cheers and shouted greetings welcomed the group as they walked through the doors, although that was soon interrupted when Natsu launched himself at one of the members, sending him flying.

“You lied about that Salamander! I’m going to kick your butt!” Natsu accused the man pulling himself out of the wreckage of what was once a table.

“Hey, don’t get mad at me!” he retorted. “I’m not the one to blame here! I just passed along a rumour I heard!”

“It was just a rumour?!” Natsu shrieked. 

Any further chance at conversation then disappeared as a brawl broke out, sweeping all the other people in the room into it as it went on. Lucy was half-frozen by the doorway, the awe of actually being inside the Fairy Tail guild hall quickly turning into shock at the massive fight unfolding before her. 

Beside her, Kagome watched on in mild amusement, the noise and chaos somewhat nostalgic for her. Although she did have to raise an eyebrow when she realised that one of the combatants had somehow managed to lose all of his clothes bar his underwear. Oh, no, there go those, too.

While Lucy sputtered in shock at the sheer craziness going on around her, the two girls were approached by a beautiful young woman with long white hair and holding a tray full of drinks.

“Hello. Are you two new here?” asked the woman who Kagome assumed to be the barmaid.

“It’s Mirajane!” Lucy breathed, starting to inwardly fangirl before snapping himself out of it. “Um, don’t you think we should try to stop them or something?”

“It’s always like this around here. I just leave them alone,” Mirajane reassured, giving the brawlers a fond smile before turning back to the two girls. “Besides, it’s kind of fun, don’t you think?” she asked just before Kagome snapped up a bright pink barrier around the three of them. Barely half a second later, a tall, burly man that Kagome guessed to be Mirajane’s brother, going by the matching hair colour, went flying into it before sliding down to the floor.

“Right, fun,” Lucy agreed weakly with a sweat drop as Kagome’s barrier disappeared. _‘If Kagome’s barrier hadn’t been there, that guy would have taken out Mirajane! And she calls this fun?!’_ she thought somewhat hysterically.

“That barrier was really cool,” Mirajane said, turning to Kagome. “And it took you no time at all to put it up!”

“Thanks,” Kagome smiled, idly dodging a stray beer mug. “It took quite a bit of practice to make it so second nature.”

“How are you both so calm?!” Lucy cried in distress.

Suddenly, a deep, echoing voice interrupted the fight. “Would you fools stop bickering like children?!”

Looking around, Kagome and Lucy were surprised to see an absolute giant of a man, features shadowed, standing in the middle of the guildhall and glaring at everyone. Silence took over as everyone froze in place.

“Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t realise you were still here, Master,” Mirajane greeted the giant with a smile.

“Did you say ‘Master’?” Lucy squeaked.

“Ha ha ha!” Natsu laughed, hands on his hips. “Talk about a bunch of babies! I guess that means I win this round! Ack!”

Natsu’s boast was interrupted by the giant stepping on him, sending him crashing to the floor. The giant then turned to face the three girls.

“Well, seems we’ve some new recruits,” he rumbled.

“Y-y-yes, sir,” Lucy stuttered in fear of the being before her.

Then, the strangest thing happened. That great, hulking, giant of a figure began to shrink. And shrink. And shrink. Until standing where the giant had once been was the tiniest little old man Kagome had ever met.

“Nice to meet you,” he waved, voice several octaves higher than the gravelly rumble it was before.

“He’s tiny,” Lucy gasped in shock. “This little guy is really in charge here?”

“Of course he is,” Mirajane laughed. “Allow me to introduce the Fairy Tail guild master, Makarov.”

Makarov gave a quick nod of greeting before turning and jumping up to the second story banister. There, he looked over all of his guilty faced guild members. “You’ve gone and done it this time!” he started to lecture them. “Just look at all this paperwork I’ve been sent by the Magic Council! This is the biggest pile of complaints yet! Have you kids lost your minds?! All you kids are good for is getting the higher-ups mad at me!!”

Everyone looked down in shame as Makarov fumed above them. Suddenly, though, his attitude seemed to change. “However,” he held up the paperwork still in his hand before the whole pile caught on fire, “I say to heck with the Magic Council!”

What followed was a truly inspiring speech about magic and following the path one believes in, regardless of what the Magic Council’s rules say. Even Kagome, as closed off as she had been from others over the last few years, got caught up in the cheerful atmosphere.

After that, order was quickly restored in the guildhall, and while the boys cleared away the tables and chairs that had been broken in the fight, Mirajane led Lucy and Kagome over to the bar, welcoming Lucy to the guild and giving her a pink guild mark on the back of her hand, no questions asked. 

While Lucy held up her hand and oohed over the mark now on the back of it, Mirajane turned to Kagome.

“What about you?” she asked, holding up the stamp. “Would you like to join as well?”

Despite just seeing Lucy be welcomed just like that, Kagome was still taken aback at the offer. Seeing Lucy’s hopeful, expectant face, Kagome gave Mirajane a gentle smile. “If you would be willing to have me, then I would be honoured to join, Mirajane.”

“Of course,” Mirajane agreed with a cheerful smile, as if it was ridiculous to think otherwise. “And please, call me Mira. Now, where would you like it?”

“Umm,” Kagome thought quickly, glancing down at herself to determine where a guild mark would be easy to see. “On my shoulder, please,” she decided, turning slightly so her left shoulder was facing Mira, making it easy for the white-haired woman to stamp it. When the stamp was removed, it was to see a sapphire blue guild mark, outlined in pink.

“It matches your outfit,” Mira laughed, putting the stamp down on the bar in front of her. “So, Lucy, I noticed the keys on your belt. Are you a Celestial Wizard by any chance?”

“Yep, I sure am!” Lucy confirmed.

“Oh, how wonderful! And what about you, Kagome?” Mira asked the second of Fairy Tail’s newest recruits. “What kind of magic do you use? I must confess, I can’t think of any magic that creates a barrier quite like yours.”

“Ahh, I’m a bit complicated,” Kagome rubbed a hand against the back of her neck sheepishly. “Officially, I’m actually an Illusionist. But in reality, I’m kind of a mixed bag of all sorts of different tricks. That barrier from before was just one of them.”

Mira looked fascinated, but before she could ask anything else, Kirara jumped down from Kagome’s shoulder onto the bar top and started pawing at the guild stamp.

“Kirara?” Kagome asked, confused. “You want to join as well?”

Kirara mewed in agreement so Kagome turned back to Mira. “Would that be possible?” she asked.

“Well,” Mira hedged, “we have accepted a cat into the guild before, but Happy has magic. If Kirara does, too, then I’m sure it would be no problem.”

Kagome smirked. “Kirara?” she asked, an odd note of suppressed amusement in her voice. “Would you like to show Mira what you can do?”

Kirara gave a cute little mew of agreement before jumping off the bar. Walking over to an empty patch of floor, she turned back around to face Mira.

Mira cocked her head slightly in confusion, wondering what Kirara would do, before her eyes widened in shock as the cute little kitten was engulfed in a ball of flame, causing several watching guild members to cry out. When the flames disappeared, it was to reveal a giant, sabre-toothed cat standing in Kirara’s place, her head level with Kagome’s shoulder.

The transformed Kirara let out a roar, attracting the attention of everyone else in the room who wasn’t already watching, before her form was engulfed in flames for a second time, turning her back into the cute little kitten she was before.

“Whoa,” Happy breathed, stars in his eyes. “That’s amazing.”

“Isn’t it just?” Kagome chuckled, smiling at the flying blue cat before scooping up Kirara and turning back to Mira. “So, will that do?”

“Uhuh, uhh, yep, I think that’ll do!” Mira quickly snapped out of her shock, picking up the magic stamp once again. “Alright, Kirara, come over here and we’ll get you marked, too.”

Kirara gave a happy mew before jumping back onto the bar, sitting with her back facing Mira for her to stamp, which she promptly did so, revealing a guild mark as black as the rest of her markings. Kirara gave a pleased purr, rubbing her head against Mira’s hand in thanks, before jumping back to her customary perch on Kagome’s shoulder.

“Yay!” squealed Lucy, grabbing Kagome in a hug. “Now we’re all members of Fairy Tail! Let’s go show Natsu!” she cheered, taking off towards where she had seen a mop of pink hair and dragging Kagome after her.

Unfortunately for Lucy’s enthusiasm, Natsu was more interested in perusing the request board than oohing over her new guild mark, so the two girls returned to Mira at the bar. Before they could strike up a new conversation, however, a young voice caught their attention.

“How come my dad hasn’t come back yet?” a young boy asked Master Makarov.

“You’re starting to work my nerves, Romeo,” Makarov said, eyes on the drink in his hand. “You’re a wizard’s son. Have faith in your father and wait patiently for him.”

“But, sir!” the young boy, Romeo, protested. “He told me he’d be back in three days, and he’s been gone for over a week now!”

The conversation did not get any better from there, as Romeo insisted someone go look for his father while Makarov stated the man could handle himself. Eventually, Romeo ended up punching Makarov before running out of the guild in tears.

“That’s got to be tough,” Lucy murmured while Kagome looked after the young boy with sympathy.

“I know it sounds like the Master doesn’t care, but he really is worried,” Mira started to reassure Lucy before a loud crunching sound interrupted.

Looking over, it was to see that Natsu had shoved the request form he was looking at almost _through_ the board and was now stalking out of the guild.

“He’s going to Mt Hakobe to save Macao, isn’t he, Master?” one of the guild members asked.

“When is that kid going to grow up?” a second guild member commented.

“Who knows?” the first replied, shaking his head. “Going after Macao isn’t going to do anything except hurt his pride.”

“Remember, Nab,” Makarov said gently, closing his eyes, “we can’t choose another’s path. Just leave him be.”

“Why did Natsu get so upset?” Lucy asked no one in particular.

“Probably because he and Romeo have a lot in common,” Mira answered, voice soft and slightly sad. “I think he sees himself in Romeo. Just because we’re members of Fairy Tail, doesn’t mean we don’t have our own personal issues. We’ve all had our fair share of suffering and loss.”

 _‘And who have you lost, Mira, to fill you with such an agonizing sorrow?’_ Kagome wondered silently.

“Many years ago,” Mira continued to explain, unaware of the contemplative blue gaze upon her, “Natsu’s father left and never came back. Well, technically it wasn’t his real father, but the one who raised him. He was actually a dragon.”

“Family isn’t limited by blood,” Kagome said, gaining an understanding smile from Mira.

“Wait!” Lucy cried. “Natsu was really raised by a _dragon_?”

Mira nodded in confirmation. “When he was a little boy, a dragon found him wandering the forest. He took him in and taught him all about language, culture, and magic. But one day, the dragon disappeared and never returned.”

“The Igneel he was looking for,” Kagome murmured, eyes soft.

“That’s right, and Natsu lives for the day he will finally see Igneel again.” Mira turned to face the two of them with a gentle smile. “It’s kind of cute, don’t you think?”

Kagome and Lucy sat in silence for a little while, thinking over everything Mira had just told them, before Lucy stood up determinedly.

“Kagome?” she asked her friend, firm eyes asking the question she did not voice.

“You don’t even have to ask,” Kagome answered, already knowing what Lucy wanted to do. Rising as well, Kagome started leading the way out of the guildhall, calling back over her shoulder, “Thanks for everything, Mira. We’ll be back soon.”

Lucy tossed a final wave behind her before the two girls were out the door, leaving Mira and Master Makarov to exchange a knowing glance.

* * *

Once outside, it didn’t take Kagome long to track down which way Natsu went, and the two girls caught up to him in no time. Soon, the odd group of five were sequestered in a small carriage on their way to Mt Hakobe, the two girls watching in shock as Natsu was absolutely _crippled_ by motion sickness.

Thankfully, he managed to not hurl, and they eventually arrived at their destination. They still had a short distance to traverse on foot, but the carriage had taken them as far as it could. Unfortunately, despite it being the middle of summer, Mt Hakobe was covered in snow and freezing cold, and Lucy was soon shivering uncontrollably.

Frowning in concern for her friend, Kagome, impossibly, pulled a large cloak from her left sleeve and handed it to Lucy. “Here, put this on.”

“Kagome? Shouldn’t you keep this? I mean, aren’t you cold, too?” Lucy asked even as she pulled the fabric around her own shoulders and huddled into its warmth.

“I’m fine,” Kagome shook her head with a smile. “My body runs at a higher temperature than yours does. I am a little cold, but not as cold as you. I’ll be ok as long as we’re not out in this weather for _too_ long.”

“Oh, well, thanks,” Lucy mumbled gratefully, nose buried in the soft cloth. Still, even with the cloak, it wasn’t long before Lucy was shivering once again and complaining about the cold.

“Oh, I know,” she cried, after getting no sympathy from the boys even though Natsu wasn’t even wearing a proper shirt. “Open, Gate of the Clock Constellation, Horologium!” she called, brandishing a silver key.

There was a chime like a doorbell and a puff of smoke and when it disappeared there stood a grandfather clock with arms, legs, and a human face.

“Woah,” Natsu and Happy breathed, staring at the spirit in awe while Kagome raised an eyebrow, guessing what Lucy’s plan was. “That’s so cool!”

Moving quickly, Lucy yanked open the glass door on Horologium’s front, climbed inside, and pulled the door shut again behind her. The four left outside could then see her mouth moving, but couldn’t hear a word she said.

“She says, _I’m staying in here and I’m not coming out_ ,” Horologium translated.

“Then why’d you come along?” Natsu asked in disbelief.

“ _What kind of crazy job would force Macao to come to a place like this_ , she inquires,” Horologium parroted faithfully.

“You should have asked that before you came with us,” Natsu crossed his arms. “He went to slay a Vulcan. It’s a big monster.”

“ _I want to go back to the guild_ , she proclaims,” said Horologium.

“Go ahead and be my guest, I say back,” Natsu retorted, walking away up the mountain path.

Kagome let loose a small chuckle. “Come on, Lucy,” she said reassuringly. “It won’t be that bad.”

It appeared that Kagome had spoken a little too soon, however, as Natsu’s shouts for Macao appeared to have attracted the attention of the Vulcan Macao had been sent to defeat. 

Jumping down from above, a towering, musclebound, monkey-like figure landed hard where Natsu had been standing just a moment ago, sending snow flying everywhere. However, instead of getting into a fight with Natsu, it turned and ran to where Kagome and Lucy inside Horologium were standing.

“Me like human woman,” it leered, tossing Kagome over its shoulder and tucking Horologium under one arm before running away with them both.

While Lucy shouted for Natsu to save them, with Horologium dutifully relaying her words, Kagome lay limp but ready, allowing the monster to make off with her in the hope that it would take her to the missing Macao.

In no time at all, the two girls had been transported to a cave near the summit of the mountain. The Vulcan deposited them in a corner before leering at them both, looking between them as if trying to choose one first. While Lucy panicked, Kagome discreetly drew her legs under her, ready to spring into action.

“Kirara, guard Lucy,” Kagome murmured softly to the cat under her hair, who promptly slid down to stand just before Horologium.

At that moment, the Clock Spirit disappeared in a puff of smoke, its time in the human world up, leaving Lucy sitting on the ground in its place. Kirara transformed into her larger form and let out a roar when the commotion pulled the attention of the Vulcan to the blonde she was guarding. 

“Hey, you big ape!” Natsu’s voice interrupted. Looking over, the girls, cat, and Vulcan could see Natsu charging towards them at full speed. “Where’s Macao! Tell me!!”

Unfortunately, what would have been an impressive entrance was ruined when Natsu’s foot slipped on a patch of ice, sending him spinning and sliding into the cave wall.

“Spill it, monkey,” Natsu demanded, despite his rather undignified position slumped upside-down against the wall. “Where is my friend?”

Standing upright, Natsu continued his demands to be taken to Macao, only to fall for the oldest trick in the book when the Vulcan pointed to a hole in the cliffside before booting Natsu out of it.

“Natsu!” Lucy cried in horror before glaring at the Vulcan that was dancing in celebration for having gotten rid of Natsu. “Alright you pervy monkey,” she growled, grabbing hold of one of her golden keys, “you’re going down. Open, Gate of the Golden Bull, Taurus!”

While the Vulcan was distracted by the appearance of a large, bipedal bull wielding a massive axe, Kagome took the opportunity to spring at the Vulcan, sending a powerful fist right into its face. The blow didn’t knock it out, unfortunately, and Kagome leapt back to Lucy’s side before the monster could retaliate.

“Nice to see you again, Taurus,” Kagome greeted the spirit.

“Lady Kagome, you look as sexy as always,” the bull leered back.

“No touch my women,” the Vulcan growled.

“ _Your_ women?” Taurus asked. “Those are fighting words, you moooonkey.”

“Get him!” Lucy cried.

Taurus swung his giant axe off his back and hit the ground with a powerful blow, causing the ice to split beneath the Vulcan’s feet. Unfortunately, the Vulcan managed to dodge the blow and closed in on Taurus for a counterattack. Before Taurus could make another move, however, Natsu exploded back into the fight… by punching the wrong opponent.

Poor Taurus was sent flying, crashing to the ground several metres away where he lay in a daze, knocked senseless by the blow.

“Hey, so how come there are more monsters now than when I left?” Natsu asked, jerking a thumb at the two ‘monsters’.

“He’s a friend, dummy, one of my spirits!” Lucy shouted in outrage.

“That guy?” Natsu asked, looking at the still-standing Vulcan.

“Not him, the bull! Wait a minute,” Lucy seemed to realise something. “How were you able to survive out there?”

Natsu smirked. “Happy came to save me. Thanks, little buddy!”

“Aye,” Happy chirped from where he was hovering above their heads, causing Lucy to look up in shock.

“Don't tell me you forgot about the talking, flying cat, Lucy,” Kagome teased her friend.

“Of course I didn’t!” Lucy shouted, looking away with a blush at the lie, before turning back to Natsu curiously. “So, you can’t handle other modes of transportation, but flying with Happy is ok?”

“What kind of stupid question is that?” Natsu asked, face twisted in a strange mix of offence and disgust. “Happy isn’t a mode of transportation. He’s my friend! I mean, duh.”

“You’re right, it was totally wrong of me to compare the two,” Lucy retorted, voice thick with sarcasm.

“Guys, giant monster we’re trying to fight?” Kagome reminded, intercepting the Vulcan’s fist with her own, causing a shockwave to blow out from where the two forces met.

“Right!” Natsu shouted, jumping over Kagome and throwing a fist of his own at the Vulcan. Kagome stepped back beside Lucy as she let Natsu take over the fight.

“Now you listen up,” he growled at the Vulcan as the two exchanged blows. “I consider everyone in the Fairy Tail guild my friend! Whether it’s Gramps and Mira, or even those annoying jerks Gray and Elfman! Happy, Lucy, Kagome, and Kirara, too. They’re all my friends. Which is why… I’M NOT LEAVING WITHOUT MACAO!” A flame enhanced kick accompanied Natsu’s final shout, sending the Vulcan crashing into the ceiling and knocking down several ice stalactites.

The Vulcan retaliated by sending the fallen spears of ice flying towards the group of wizards. Kagome threw up a barrier around the four observers while the ice melted before it could even touch Natsu. 

When the steam cleared, it was to see that the Vulcan had picked up Taurus’s dropped axe. With a weapon now in his opponent’s hands, Natsu went on the defensive, before another slip due to the treacherous ice had him catching the axe in his hands, straining to stop it from cleaving him in two. 

Kagome intervened then, sending a kick flying towards the Vulcan’s face, leaving the monster with no choice but to drop the axe in order to avoid the blow. She then jumped back once again as Natsu leapt forth with a fistful of flames. 

“Eat this!” he shouted. “Fire Dragon Iron Fist!”

That final blow seemed to do the trick, as the Vulcan slumped, unconscious, in the crater in the wall its body had made.

“We beat him!” Happy cheered as the group of five approached the fallen creature.

“Yeah, but, wasn’t this monkey supposed to tell us where your friend is?” Lucy asked as Kagome frowned at the creature thoughtfully.

“Oh, forgot about that,” Natsu admitted sheepishly, rubbing a hand in his pink hair.

Suddenly, the Vulcan’s body began to glow before disappearing in an explosion of light, leaving in its place a human man.

“What the heck?” Natsu asked in shock. “Macao?”

“Are you telling me that big, perverted monkey was actually your friend this whole time?” Lucy cried.

“He must have been taken over by that Vulcan,” Happy analysed. “It must have used a possession spell on him.”

“He looks like he put up a good fight,” Kagome observed, taking in his many injuries. “We should get his wounds treated. Lucy, find a clear patch of ground and spread your cloak out on it. Natsu, help me move him.”

Working together, the three soon had Macao laid out on the ground. Kagome then knelt down at his side. “Alright, let me see what I’m working with,” she murmured, hovering her hands above Macao’s shoulders before they began to glow pink.

“Whoa, what is that?” Natsu breathed, watching with wide eyes as some of Macao’s injuries seemed to shrink before him.

“It’s called reiki,” Kagome answered distractedly, attention on the task before her. “It’s mostly a supportive ability. It’s what I use to make my barriers. With a little more concentration, however, I can use it to heal. I can’t perform any miracles, but it allows me to get a solid understanding of a person’s injuries and I can help speed up the healing process a bit.”

Focusing completely on Macao, Kagome’s hands continued to glow for a little while longer before it faded away. “It’s ok, Natsu, he’ll be alright,” Kagome reassured the worried teen hovering at her shoulder. “I know he looks bad, but it’s mostly surface injuries. I’ve already healed the worst of his wounds. He’ll be completely recovered in no time.”

While Natsu let out a breath and slumped in relief, Kagome reached into her left sleeve, again pulling out something impossible. This time, it was a large box that, when opened, revealed itself to be full of medical supplies.

“Lucy, can you help me bandage the remaining injuries?” Kagome asked, turning to the task of treating whatever her reiki had not healed.

While the two girls worked quietly, Macao woke up and Natsu assuaged the man’s battered pride about being able to defeat _only_ nineteen of the twenty Vulcans there were originally. Kagome snorted silently as she listened to them talk – men and their pride, ridiculous, as if what happened was anything to be ashamed of.

Wrapping up the last injury, Kagome and Lucy packed away the remaining supplies before the box disappeared back into Kagome’s sleeve. They then helped Macao up and onto Kirara’s back so the large fire-cat could carry him back down the mountain. Then it was time to brave the cold once again as the group made its way home.

* * *

Back in Magnolia, a small figure was sitting outside all alone, waiting desperately for his dad to come home.

“Hey, Romeo!” a voice called out, causing him to look up from where he had been staring dejectedly at the crowd. There, before him, coming closer with every step, where Natsu, Happy, the two new Fairy Tail girls and their weird cat, and… his dad!

He was battered and bruised and covered in bandages, but he was back!

Bursting into tears, Romeo tackled his father in a hug.

Kagome and Lucy smiled at the touching reunion happening before them, before turning with Natsu to leave the father and son to it.

“Natsu! Happy! Thanks for your help!” Romeo shouted from behind them.

“No prob, kiddo,” Natsu waved behind him.

“Lucy! Kagome! Kirara! Thanks for helping them bring my daddy back to me!” Romeo continued.

Lucy and Kagome turned back to smile and wave while Kirara mewed and flicked her tails. The two then turned to face each other, identical pleased smiles at having done such a good thing on their faces. It was a good way to start their time as members of Fairy Tail.


	3. Duke Everlue

It had been several days since Lucy and Kagome had arrived in Magnolia and become members of Fairy Tail, and the girls were starting to settle in quite nicely. For the first few nights they had been put up at Fairy Hills – the girls’ dormitory – for a small fee, but they had been on the lookout for other options and they had just found a great one. 

It was a quaint little three-bedroom apartment on Strawberry Street with a decent kitchen, a living/dining area and a _wonderful_ shared bathroom for an absolute steal of just 195,000 Jewel a month. Split between them, that was only 97,500 Jewel each!

Kagome was unpacking some of her things in the bedroom she had claimed as her own while Lucy enjoyed the amazing bath this house sported to have a nice soak. Her ears twitched as she heard movement coming from the main room, but she recognized the auras, so she decided to finish what she was doing before going to greet their uninvited guests.

A few minutes later, Lucy’s scream announced that she, too, had noticed their intruders.

“What are you doing here?!” Lucy shrieked, followed by a loud thud. “Get the heck out of here, you jerks.”

Coming out of her bedroom, Kagome shook her head with a smile at the sight of a fuming Lucy clad in only a bath towel and a pouting Natsu rubbing at a red mark on his cheek where Lucy had obviously hit him.

“Geez, we just came over to check out your new pad,” Natsu whined.

“Oh, yeah? Well what you call ‘checking out’, I call ‘barging in’! And I’m pretty sure the police would call it ‘breaking and entering’!” Lucy shouted.

“Easy there, Lucy, it’s not _that_ bad,” Kagome soothed. “Hello, Natsu, Happy. It’s nice to see you.”

“At least someone appreciates our visit,” Natsu pouted.

“Nice place you got here,” Happy complimented, sharpening his claws on a nearby wall.

“Happy, if you must do that, there is a scratching post in the corner of my room. Please use that instead of our apartment wall?” Kagome asked calmly while Lucy freaked out behind her.

“Hey, what’s this?” Natsu asked, picking up a stack of papers from the desk in the corner.

“Nothing!” Lucy desperately cried, snatching the papers from Natsu, hugging them protectively to her chest, and kicking him away.

“So, you just kicked me in the face over nothing?” Natsu asked.

“Yeah, maybe I would!” Lucy yelled, still hugging the papers. “Now would you please just go home?”

“Ah, but your place is way more exciting,” Natsu grinned.

“I hate boys,” Lucy sobbed.

“Now, now, Lucy,” Kagome hushed, moving to her overemotional friend. “It’s alright. Why don’t you go get dressed while I put on some tea, hmm?” Kagome asked, helping Lucy to her feet and easing the papers out of her clinging grip before steering her towards her bedroom. “There we are. Off you go, now. Take your time.”

Lucy came back several minutes later, now dressed, only for her shoulders to slump at seeing Natsu and Happy _still_ in her new house. Still, at least now they were sitting calmly at the table with Kagome, a cup of tea in front of each of them and a fourth steaming cup waiting in front of an empty chair for Lucy.

“Look, Kagome and I just moved in,” Lucy said, mood calmer but still rather dark. “We’re not really ready for guests. So how about you just drink your tea, say thanks, and get out, you got that?”

“Man, talk about cold-hearted,” Natsu muttered.

“Ice cold,” Happy agreed, causing Lucy’s eyebrow to twitch.

“Hey, I know,” Natsu called, perking up and distracting Lucy before she could blow up at the blue feline. “Why don’t you show me and Happy all those little key guys that you like to collect?”

Kagome smirked into her tea, knowing that Natsu’s unwitting question was about to start off a lecture. If there was one thing Lucy could talk about, it was her Spirits. And she was right, with Lucy first correcting Natsu about what they were called before proceeding on to how they worked, the difference between silver keys and gold keys, and which keys in particular she had contracts with.

“That reminds me,” Lucy said, hitting her hand with her fist, “I need to make a contract with the key I bought in Hargeon. I don’t suppose you boys would be interested in seeing how a Celestial Wizard makes a contract with a Celestial Spirit?”

While the boys debated what creating a contract would entail, Kagome looked on in interest, as she also had never seen a Celestial contract formed. Moving to stand in a clear space, Lucy brandished the silver key she bought a few days ago. 

“Alright, now pay attention,” Lucy said, holding the key out before her as if she were inserting it into a lock. “I call upon thee, in the world of the Celestial Spirits. I beckon you to my side at once. Pass through the Gate. Open, Key of Canis Minor, come, Nikola!”

There was a puff of smoke like every time Lucy summoned one of her spirits, but Kagome had to raise an eyebrow at the creature that was left in its wake. It was only about the same size as Happy, which, ok, it was Canis _Minor_ , but still… it looked nothing like a dog. Instead, if Kagome were being honest, it put her more in mind of a little snowman, especially with that orange nose that looked like a cone stuck to its face. On top of that, it trembled continuously and uncontrollably, as if it were terrified of the very world. Still, in a weird way, it was actually kind of cute. Lucy definitely seemed to think so if the way she was almost smothering it was any indication.

“Well, let’s start working on our contract,” Lucy said, pulling out a simple notepad and pen. “Are you free Mondays?” The Spirit shook its head. “Tuesdays?” A nod. “Wednesdays?”

Kagome’s eyebrow raised even higher at the… _mundane_ way the Spirit contract was being formed. From the way Lucy had talked about it, Kagome was expecting something a bit more complicated. A bit more _magical_.

“Great, well that just about does it,” Lucy said, making one final note. “Now all that’s left is to come up with a name. Hmm. Oh, I got it! Come here, Plue!” Lucy called, opening her arms for the little Spirit.

“So that’s it?” Happy asked around a mouthful of fish Kagome had split between him and Kirara. “That’s all it takes to form a contract?”

“It may seem pretty silly to you, but it’s really important. You see, a Celestial Wizard’s contract relies on the promise that is made between the Wizard and the Spirit. Which is why I make it a point to _always_ keep my promises. Got it?”

“Got it,” Natsu and Happy answered, somewhat dubiously.

“Well, I think it is a very admirable policy for you to have, Lucy,” Kagome smiled at her friend.

“Hey, so we’ve just seen Lucy’s magic, but what can you do, again?” Natsu asked Kagome. “You were talking about barriers and healing before, and I saw you were pretty strong when you punched that Vulcan. Is that all?

“Far from it,” Kagome laughed. “Like I told Mira the other day, I have quite a large bag of tricks up my sleeve.”

“Actually, I’m curious, too,” Lucy interjected. “I’ve known you for a year now and even I don’t know everything you can do.”

“Well, a girl’s got to have _some_ secrets,” Kagome answered evasively. “But for now… I have advanced senses. My nose and ears are far beyond any normal human’s. I also have enhanced strength, like you saw with the Vulcan, and to a lesser extent advanced speed and reflexes. You’ve already seen my barriers and healing, but as I told Mira, officially my magic is illusions.”

“Illusions?” asked Happy curiously from where he was standing on the table with Plue.

“Mmhm,” Kagome agreed wordlessly before turning towards the little Spirit. “Plue? Would you mind if a cast an illusion over you for a moment?”

Getting an agreeing sound from the Spirit, Kagome pulled a leaf out of her sleeve.

“A leaf? What do you need that for?” Natsu asked.

“It’s an anchor for my spell. With practice, I could get to the point where it is no longer necessary, but most illusions are more stable with something to anchor them. I have found that leaves are especially good at channelling my particular brand of magic,” Kagome explained.

She frowned in concentration for a moment before placing the leaf on top of Plue’s head. There was a puff of smoke and where Plue once stood there was now a second Happy.

“Whoa!” Natsu and Happy cried, moving closer to examine the illusioned Spirit. “That’s awesome! Can you do that with anything?”

“Eeh,” Kagome said, wobbling a hand uncertainly. “It’s complicated. It depends on a lot of things, like how big the illusion is, how well I know whatever I’m turning it into, how long it has to last, if there’s any interfering magic around, how in-depth the illusion has to be, and more. There is also the fact that I am nowhere close to a master of the art. The stronger and more experienced I become, the less those factors will have an impact, but at the moment I am still learning.”

“Did you understand all that?” Natsu asked Happy in an aside.

“Not really,” the cat failed to whisper back. “I think it boiled down to ‘it’s really hard, but she can do some’. It’s still really cool though.”

“That it is, little buddy!” Natsu agreed with a grin, giving his partner a thumbs up before turning back to Kagome. “So is that all, now? Wait, when we rescued Macao, you pulled that massive medicine box out of your sleeve. There is no way that would fit in there so how did you do that? Can you use Requip magic, too?”

Kagome looked at Natsu consideringly. “Alright, one more secret for the day,” she conceded, pulling back her left sleeve. “I’m not exactly sure what Requip magic is, but my secret is this,” she said, holding up her left wrist and showing Natsu and Happy the charm bracelet hanging from it. “My bracelet is enchanted so I can store things on it as little charms, and then take them off to use them whenever I need. Mostly I use it to hold all my weapons, but I also use it to hold my medical supplies, changes of clothes, camping equipment, and anything else I might need. See?” she asked, taking hold of a box-shaped charmed that glowed a faint silver before transforming into the medicine box from before in her hand. The box then glowed silver and it was back as just another charm on her bracelet.

“So cool!” Natsu cried. “Alright then, it’s settled, you’re all going to be a part of our team.”

“Your team?” Lucy asked, confused.

“Aye,” Happy began to explain. “Even though everyone in the guild is allied to one another, some members that get along really well get together and form teams within the guild. That way, jobs that may be too hard for one person to take can get done by a team!”

“Awesome!” Lucy shouted. “Kagome, what do you think?”

“Sounds good to me,” Kagome smiled.

“Alright! Let’s do it!” Lucy cheered, the three knocking their fists together in agreement.

“Ok, team, then let’s get to work!” Natsu called, holding up a request form. “I’ve got our first job right here!”

“Ooh, let me see what you’ve got,” Lucy cried, snatching the request form from Natsu’s hand while Kagome read it over her shoulder. “So, it’s in Shiratsume? “No way, 200,000 Jewel just for taking a book from some rich guy named Duke Everlue?”

“Should be a piece of cake, right?” Natsu asked with a shit-eating grin while Happy and not-Happy did a synchronized dance on the table.

“Please note,” Lucy read the fine print at the bottom, “Everlue is a dirty old man who is currently looking for maids with blonde hair?!”

“You know, we know a blonde-haired girl, don’t we?” Natsu ‘innocently’ asked Happy.

“Yep, and I bet we can find her a maid’s uniform!” Happy agreed.

“Why you sneaky little… That’s not fair!” Lucy cried before crumbling into a dejected heap.

“It's a good thing that Celestial Wizards never go back on their word, because now, you’re stuck with us!” Natsu laughed.

“But you tricked me!” Lucy wailed.

Kagome quietly laughed at the antics of her new teammates, picking up not-Happy and removing the leaf from his head, turning him back into Plue.

“Don’t worry, Lucy,” Kagome told her friend, holding up the leaf she used to cast her illusion. “You won’t have to face that ‘dirty old man’ alone. I’ll cast an illusion on my hair and join you, ok?”

“This is going to suck,” Lucy groaned.

* * *

After a carriage ride that seemed longer than it should have, what with Lucy squabbling with Happy and Natsu trying not to lose his lunch, the odd group of five finally made it to the town of Shirotsume. Natsu and Happy were called by their rumbling stomachs to a nearby restaurant, but Lucy waved them off, claiming she’d catch up to them in a bit. Kagome decided to stick with the boys, sensing that if anyone would be able to find unexpected trouble, it’d be those two, and she didn’t want to have to deal with that on her very first mission if she could help it so it was better to keep an eye on them.

The three were halfway through their meal when Lucy re-joined them, but she had undergone a major costume change. Where before she had been wearing a rather skimpy singlet top and mini-skirt combo with her hair loose apart from a small side-ponytail, she now wore a cute maid uniform that covered far more skin than her previous outfit while still being a little flirty and her hair up in twin pigtails.

While the boys were in shock at Lucy’s outfit, Kagome looked it over with a critical eye. “So that’s what you managed to find, huh? I think I can do something similar,” she mused, pulling out a leaf. She focused on it for a moment before placing it against her forehead and being engulfed in a puff of smoke. 

When it faded, Kagome’s loose black locks were now golden blonde and were held back from her face by a ruffled, white headband. While the physical appearance of her dress and stockings had mostly stayed the same, their colours had changed to match the outfit Lucy now wore, and she now had a short apron tied around her waist. Her sleeves, however, now connected to her dress, and hugged her arms all the way to her wrists where they ended in white cuffs. All in all, Natsu and Happy were now seated across from _two_ blonde maids.

That seemed to snap the boys out of their shock as they whispered to each other in a panic, unaware that both of the girls could hear them clearly, that they had only been joking about the costume but instead they’d been taken seriously.

While Lucy started to twitch, Kagome just shrugged the matter off. Joke or not, if it worked, it would be a simple way to infiltrate the mansion and get the job done.

* * *

They quickly wrapped up their meal after that and made their way to the client’s address to get a few more details about the mission. The three people and two cats soon found themselves sitting inside a lavish sitting room within a large mansion.

While the client introduced himself as Kaby Melon, Kagome’s nose subtly twitched. There was something off with the scents of this place. And wouldn’t a house this large have a few servants? But the client and his wife were the only ones here. It was odd.

“Allow me to tell you about the job,” Kaby began to explain. “It’s pretty straightforward, really. Duke Everlue has a book called ‘Daybreak’ in his possession. I would like you to burn it for me.”

“No prob,” Natsu said, lighting a finger on fire in demonstration. “I’ll burn the whole place down if you want.”

“He likes fire,” Happy needlessly explained.

“I’m not going to jail because of the two of you!” Lucy hissed at them before turning back to the client. “May I ask why, sir?” she said politely.

“For 200,000 Jewel, who the heck cares?” Natsu asked her, not understanding why she wanted to know.

“The reward has been raised to two million,” Kaby said, shocking the group sitting opposite him. “I’m sorry, I thought you were aware the amount had changed.”

Natsu looked as if he had fried a circuit. He was trying to finger calculate what two million Jewel split five ways would be, but judging by the smoke coming from his ears, his brain had been overwhelmed.

“Two million split five ways is 400,000 Jewel each, Natsu,” Kagome rescued the poor boy’s remaining brain cells before he burnt them out.

“Why did you raise the reward?” Lucy asked Kaby.

“Well, because it means that much to me,” Kaby said, gripping his hands together tightly. “That book _must_ be destroyed, no matter the cost.”

“Oh, yeah! I am fired up now!” Natsu shouted, literally catching fire. Grabbing Lucy’s wrist, who in turn latched on to Kagome in desperation, Natsu took off out the door, dragging the two girls behind him. “Let’s do this!”

* * *

Lucy and Kagome stood outside the closed gates of Duke Everlue’s enormous mansion.

“Excuse me!” Lucy shouted. “We heard you had an opening for a maid position?! Hello?!”

No one seemed to be answering from inside, but then the ground behind them started to bulge upwards. Moving out of the way, an absolute gorilla of a woman with pink hair and wearing a maid’s outfit burst out of the ground and landed in front of Lucy and Kagome.

“So, you’re both maids?” the gorilla woman asked. “I assume you’re here because you saw the ad the Master placed in the paper?”

Before either of the girls could answer, another figure burst from the ground, with the weird cry of, “Boyoyoyoyo.”

“Did I hear someone say ‘Master’?” the newcomer asked. Now that he had both feet on the ground, the girls could see it was a short, rather rotund man in a suit, with what looked like an impressive moustache, only for a second look to notice that those were _nose hairs_. 

Kagome hid a shudder of disgust as, presumably, Duke Everlue looked her and Lucy up and down in consideration. Eventually, he turned his back on the two and threw his hands out at his sides. “I’ll pass,” he declared. “Now, scram, you two uglies.”

While Lucy looked as if she’d just been shot in the heart, Kagome was torn between feeling the same and feeling relieved – she did not want to be under this creepy guy’s scrutiny any longer than she had to.

“Sorry, but a man of my standing has certain standards to uphold,” Duke Everlue explained as four more maids burst out of the ground, each more disturbingly ugly than the last. “That’s why I only hire the fairest of the fair.”

“Well, then, sorry for taking up your time, we’ll try our luck elsewhere,” Kagome said as politely as she could before grabbing a shell-shocked Lucy by the wrist and dragging her out of sight and around the corner where Natsu, Happy and Kirara were waiting.

“So, you couldn’t do it, huh?” Natsu asked with his arms crossed.

“I tried!” Lucy sobbed. “But that idiot wouldn’t know beauty if it bit him in the behind!”

“That may be,” Kagome said, still feeling a shudder running down her spine, “but would you rather be called ugly by a man like that, or would you rather be called beautiful by a man like that, especially considering the other girls he had with him.”

Lucy stared blankly at Kagome for a moment before realisation dawned in her eyes and a shudder of her own overtook her.

“Right, then,” Natsu declared, punching a fist into his hand, “I guess we’ll have to resort to old Plan T!”

“Yeah!” Lucy agreed. “That fat jerk is going to pay for this!”

“One question,” Kagome interrupted. “What _is_ ‘Plan T’?”

“Take them by storm!” Happy cried.

“That’s not a plan!” Lucy protested while Kirara mewed and Kagome shrugged – after all, after travelling with Inuyasha, they were well used to such a ‘plan’.

* * *

Contrary to Natsu’s wishes, Lucy managed to convince him to try a stealthier approach with Kagome adding bits of logic here and there. As such, Happy carried Natsu while Lucy and Kagome rode on the transformed Kirara up to the roof of the mansion. Once there, Natsu melted a hole in one of the glass windows before reaching through it to quietly open it from within, even if he did complain the whole time.

On the other side of the window, the group found themselves in some kind of storeroom filled with all sorts of things from maps and tapestries to suits of armour. Happy even found a strange mask that looked like a skull that he promptly put on and used to scare Lucy.

The group started to search the mansion, but in such a large place they were having a hard time finding what they were looking for and Natsu was quickly becoming antsy wanting something to just happen already. Lucy managed to slightly distract him with the idea of being stealthy like a ninja, but soon it didn’t matter as they were discovered by the ugly maid brigade. A single punch from Natsu took out all four of the supporting maids, and a flame enhanced kick was all it took to handle their gorilla of a leader.

“We mustn’t let ourselves be discovered. We are ninja,” Natsu whispered with his scarf wrapped around his head as a makeshift mask.

“Yeah, it’s a little late for that,” Kagome said, looking at the cluster of unconscious maids.

“Ninjas are supposed to be _quiet_ , guys,” Lucy despaired.

Fortunately for Lucy’s fading sanity, the next door they tried led to Duke Everlue’s library and the group quickly scattered amongst the shelves, looking for ‘Daybreak’.

While Lucy and Kagome were dutifully scanning the titles, looking for that one book in particular, Natsu and Happy were pulling out any book that caught their interest. Then, in a stroke of pure luck, Natsu pulled out ‘Daybreak’ – purely because it sparkled.

Before he could light the book on fire, however, Lucy snatched it out of his hand.

“Hang on a second,” she cried. “I didn’t know this was written by Kemu Zaleon!”

“Here we go,” Kagome mumbled under her breath while Natsu looked confused.

“Zaleon was a great wizard and an amazing novelist,” Lucy gushed. “I’m such a big fan! I was totally positive that I’d read every single sentence he’d ever written, but this must be an unpublished novel!”

“Who cares?” Natsu asked, lighting his finger on fire. “It all burns the same to me.”

“Don’t you dare touch it!” Lucy cried, holding the book protectively to her chest. “This is a great work of literature! You better stay away from it, pyro!”

“But what about our mission?” Happy asked.

“Just forget about it!” Lucy cried.

“Failure is not an option!” Happy retorted as he and Natsu closed in on Lucy, Natsu’s fists flaming.

“Well, well, what do we have here?” a creepy voice interrupted before Duke Everlue came bursting from the floor. “So, you thieves are looking to pilfer ‘Daybreak’ from me, are you? I knew all you lowlife wizards were coming around here to take _something_ of mine! I never would have guessed it was that stupid book.”

“Well, then, if it’s so stupid, I guess it’s fine if I keep it, then?” Lucy asked with a cheerful smile.

“It’s mine!” Duke Everlue shrieked. “You can’t have it, so get your grubby hands off!”

“What a selfish, greedy little man,” Kagome commented, not caring that said selfish, greedy man could hear her perfectly.

“Will you just hand it over so I can burn it already?” Natsu asked impatiently.

“No way! I’m not giving it to you!” Lucy cried.

“Lucy,” Kagome tried to reason, “this is what we were hired to do. We have a job to uphold.”

“Well, at least let me read it, first!” Lucy protested, plopping to the ground and proceeding to do just that. Everyone else sweatdropped at her.

“I’ve had enough,” Duke Everlue declared. “How dare you put your filthy hands on my possessions. Now, come forth, Vanish Brothers!”

Two bookshelves swung apart, revealing a hidden door, and framed inside it stood two men, presumably the Vanish Brothers Duke Everlue mentioned.

“You called upon us, sir?” the shorter of the brothers asked.

“Can you believe these little punks are from the Fairy Tail guild? Talk about a bunch of runts,” the second brother commented derisively.

“That sign means they’re from the Southern Wolves,” Happy cried, pointing at the emblem on the armbands the brothers wore. “It’s a mercenary guild!”

“So, you’ve got some bodyguards, huh?” Natsu asked, cracking his knuckles while Lucy seemed to notice something about the book she was reading.

“Hey, try to hold them off for a while,” Lucy requested her teammates. “I’m not sure, but I think this book holds some kind of secret.”

“Right,” Natsu agreed while Lucy ran away from the upcoming fight so she could crack the book’s secret in peace.

Unfortunately, Duke Everlue was quick to go after her, leaving the Vanish Brothers behind to stop Natsu and Kagome from rushing to Lucy’s rescue.

“Happy, go and help Lucy,” Natsu ordered while sizing up his opponents.

“Kirara, you too,” Kagome said. “This shouldn’t take us too long. We’ll be right behind you. But for now, go make sure Lucy is safe.”

“You talk big, little girl,” the brothers sneered. “Maybe we should put you in your place. Unfortunately for you, your protector there is an ability type fire wizard, and fighting them is our specialty.”

“Why, you…!” Natsu fumed, fists lighting up as he felt offended on behalf of both Kagome and himself.

“What makes you think I need a protector?!” Kagome shouted, launching herself forward. Her fist was blocked by the massive frying pan the shorter brother carried and a gong-like sound rang out as the two collided. Surprise could be seen on the brother’s face when he registered the force behind the blow.

Meanwhile, Natsu and the taller brother were also exchanging blows, although neither had managed to land a hit. Exchanging a glance, Natsu and Kagome leapt through the library doors and out into the lobby in order to have more room to fight, the Vanish Brothers quickly following them.

“Do you happen to know what a wizard’s greatest weakness is?” the shorter brother asked conversationally.

“Are you talking about motion sickness?” Natsu asked, looking a little green just thinking about it.

“Common sense?” Kagome queried, side-eyeing her pink-haired companion.

“Their bodies!” the shorter brother shouted, swinging his frying pan at the Fairy Tail wizards, causing them to jump to either side to avoid it.

“Since wizards have to focus so intensely on honing their mental abilities…” Shorty began.

“They neglect to train their bodies, which leaves them physically weak!” his taller brother took over.

“On the other hand, we focus on our physical abilities,” Shorty continued.

“So we have more power and speed than you,” the taller brother finished.

“Oh, I am so scared,” Natsu mocked.

“Does that mean I don’t have to hold back when I punch you, then?” Kagome asked, launching herself at the taller of the two.

“Bring it on!” the taller brother boasted, confident that the little girl before him wouldn’t be able to hurt him at all. 

Shorty’s eyes widened in horror. She was holding back when she hit his frying pan earlier? If that was the case, then… Before he could even think about warning his brother of the danger, however, Kagome was already upon him, a fist swinging almost faster than he could see catching his brother in the gut and sending him flying into the wall, where he slumped in a crater of his own making.

Then, he had to hurriedly swing his frying pan around to block Natsu’s Fire Dragon Roar. “Flame Cooking!” he shouted, before he explained the reason behind Natsu’s imminent demise. “You see, my frying absorbs your flames and doubles their strength, right back at you! Take this!” he cried, swinging the ball of flames at Natsu. “Now it’s your turn,” he told Kagome before something from the corner of his eye caught his attention.

Staring in horror, he watched as Natsu _ate_ the flames. Just what kind of monsters were these kids?! That was all he had time to think as Natsu came back even stronger than before with a Fire Dragon Wing Attack, leaving him charred and smoking on the floor.

“Well, that was disappointing,” Kagome commented, walking over to Natsu.

“No kidding,” Natsu agreed. “From the way they were talking, I thought they’d put up more of a fight! Guess I overdid it a bit, instead,” he mused, taking in the destroyed room around him.

“Meh,” Kagome shrugged, unconcerned.


	4. Daybreak

“Come on,” Kagome called to Natsu, walking towards one of the doorways. “We should catch up to Lucy and make sure she’s alright.”

“Yeah,” Natsu agreed before noticing movement out of the corner of his eye. “Hey, wait a moment! That gorilla maid is getting back up!”

Running over to the gorilla maid in question, Natsu grabbed hold of her shoulder – to do what, Kagome had no idea – before they both just vanished in a puff of smoke.

“Oh, shit!” Kagome cursed in realisation. “I knew her aura was off! She was a Celestial Spirit! Does that mean Natsu is now in the Spirit World?” she wondered before cursing again. “Well, nothing I can do for him at the moment if he is. All I _can_ do is track down Lucy. She better be alright.”

And with that Kagome took off into the mansion, using where she could sense Lucy’s aura as a homing beacon.

* * *

Meanwhile, _underneath_ the Everlue Mansion, Lucy was using a pair of Gale-Force Reading Glasses to read ‘Daybreak’ many times faster than she would be able to normally. Just as she got to the end of the book, Duke Evelrue half-emerged from the wall behind her and caught her arms in a crushing grip. He demanded Lucy tell him the secret behind ‘Daybreak’ and threatened to break her arms if she refused. He underestimated how strong-willed Lucy was, however, as all she did was stick her tongue out at him before crying out in pain when he tightened his grip in retaliation.

Immediately after, however, Duke Everlue cried out in pain instead and released Lucy. Looking behind her, it was to see that Happy had flown at full speed to kick Duke Everlue in the face. A hissing Kirara landed in between Lucy and the Duke, the blood on her claws matching the set of scratches running down his cheek.

“Happy! Kirara! That was amazing, you two!” Lucy cheered gratefully, scrambling to her feet away from the Duke. “Looks like the tables have turned,” Lucy declared, confident now that she was out of the Duke’s grasp and holding one of her gold keys. “But if you let me keep the book, I’ll think about going easy on you. Although I’m tempted to give you a good smack!”

“A Celestial Wizard, hey?” Duke Everlue mused. “But, for a reader, you seem to be a bit deficient in your turns of phrase. ‘The tables have turned’ implies that the weaker party has rallied to claim victory. But there’s no way you and a couple of cats could ever beat me and my diver magic!”

With that, Duke Everlue dove back into the ground, his weird cry of “Boyoyoyoyo” echoing behind him.

What followed was like a strange cross between Whack-A-Mole and Dodgems, with Duke Everlue popping out from the walls, ceiling, and floor while Lucy, Happy and Kirara twisted and leapt to avoid him.

During the chaos, Lucy confronted Everlue about him being such a horrible person while the Duke proudly and unashamedly demonstrated his own arrogance and depravity. When he asked Lucy about how she knew so much, she revealed that there was a secret to reading ‘Daybreak’ that revealed everything. But the truth was, that was only a small part of the book, and the true secret actually had nothing to do with the Duke. ‘Daybreak’ was never meant for him and as such Lucy refused to give it back.

“Open, Gate of the Giant Crab, Cancer!” she cried, summoning her Gold Spirit to help her defeat Duke Everlue.

However, she was shocked when Duke Everlue brandished a gold key of his own. “Open, Gate of the Maiden, Virgo!” he cried, a puff of smoke revealing the gorilla maid from before, and… Natsu?!

“Natsu?!” Lucy shrieked. “What are you doing up there?!”

“Well, I saw her getting up, so I jumped on her, and then, all of a sudden, I ended up here!” Natsu called from where he was hanging off Virgo’s shoulder.

“So, you grabbed a hold of her _inside_ the house?” Lucy asked in disbelief. “But that means you must have passed through the Spirit Gate with her. That’s impossible!”

“Lucy!” Natsu cried, completely confused about the current situation. “What the heck do I do now?”

“Finish what you started!” Lucy cried as if it were obvious (and really, it kind of was).

“Virgo, clean up this rubbish!” Duke Everlue commanded his spirit.

However, Virgo couldn’t defeat Natsu the first time. What made this time any different? And it was proven true as a quick Fire Dragon Roar easily took care of her. At the same time, Lucy took out her whip and, combined with Cancer’s attack, the pair took out the Duke.

It was at this point that Kagome finally arrived and the building began to shake.

“Lucy! Are you alright?” Kagome shouted. “Come on! We’ve got to get out of here! The place is about to collapse!”

Fortunately, with the help of Kirara and Happy and some fancy flying, the group made it outside just before the Everlue Mansion crumbled into the ground, much to Lucy’s horror as fears of being arrested flooded her mind.

* * *

Back in the client’s living room, Lucy handed ‘Daybreak’ to Kaby, whole and intact.

“But I requested this book be destroyed,” he said in confusion, taking the book from Lucy’s hands. “Why on earth are you handing it back to me completely unscathed.”

“If you really want to burn it, then I’d rather you do it yourself,” Lucy said softly.

“I most certainly will burn this trash. I never wanted to see it again!” Kaby exclaimed, his knuckles turning white from where he was gripping the book so hard.

“I completely understand why you feel the way you do about this book, Kaby,” Lucy empathised. “You want to protect your father’s legacy, because you’re actually Zaleon’s son, aren’t you?” Lucy asked, shocking Natsu and Happy and causing Kagome to raise an eyebrow.

“Yes, that’s true,” Kaby admitted.

“Have you read it yourself?” Lucy asked.

“No, I… I could never bring myself to do it. My father told me it was garbage.”

That was too much for Natsu, who charged forward and grabbed Kaby by the collar. “So you were just going to burn it? Without even bothering to see what’s inside?! It’s the last book that your dad wrote, right?! Some of us would kill for that kind of memory!”

“That’s enough, Natsu!” Lucy shouted as she and Kagome pulled him off of Kaby. “Let Kaby explain himself!”

“People grieve in different ways,” Kagome said gently, giving Natsu’s arm a discreet, comforting rub before stepping back to listen to Kaby’s story.

Kagome’s heart went out to the poor man as he told the sorry tale. Of how his father finally returned after three years without a word of contact, only to cut off his own hand, and then fall sick and pass away not long after. Kaby eventually felt like the only way to make things up with his father beyond the grave was to destroy the book that had caused him so much unhappiness.

“I’m sure that this is what he’d want,” Kaby said, lighting a match.

“No, you’re wrong,” Lucy interrupted.

“Kaby, look,” Kagome called, drawing his attention to the book that was at the centre of this whole mess as it began to glow.

“What’s happening?” Kaby cried.

“A spell has been cast on this book. It’s the work of the great wizard, Kemu Zaleon. Or should I say, Zekua Melon?” Lucy explained as the letters in the title of the book rearranged themselves.

“ _Dear Kaby_ ,” Kaby read aloud in shock.

“That’s right. This book is his letter to you,” Lucy said as the pages started flipping open and all the words started rearranging, “disguised behind a spell that rearranged all of the words, so no one else could read it. He didn't stop writing because he was ashamed! He stopped because he had finished his masterpiece! A novel containing everything he ever wanted to say to his beloved son. And when you read it the way he intended, it’s easily his best work ever! And now that the spell has been broken, you can read it for yourself.”

“Thank you, father,” Kaby whispered, falling to his knees while hugging the book, overcome with emotion. “I swear I will never let any harm come to this book.”

“Well, I guess we won’t be collecting that reward,” Natsu mused, turning towards the door.

“Aye,” Happy agreed while Lucy gaped at them in shock.

“We were supposed to destroy it. We didn’t finish the job,” Natsu explained.

“Even so,” Kaby pleaded, “let me do something.”

“Just keep that book safe, ok?” Kagome smiled. “It’s very precious, after all.”

“Wha- Hey! Kagome! What are you saying? Just because he changed his mind about the book doesn’t mean we don’t need the money! We have rent to pay, remember?” Lucy cried.

“Don't worry, Lucy, we’ll just take another job,” Kagome reassured, moving with Natsu towards the door while Lucy sputtered in protest.

“I think it’s time we all go home,” Natsu said before looking over his shoulder at Kaby with a smile. “That means you, too, Mr Melon. Go back home.”

* * *

“Unbelievable,” Lucy moaned as they started the long walk back to Magnolia – Natsu refusing to get on another mode of transportation today. “Who in their right minds would ever turn down two million Jewel?”

“If we had taken the money, it wouldn’t have looked good,” Natsu explained. “You’ve got to think about Fairy Tail’s image.”

“Besides, it was pretty obvious Kaby only raised the price so high out of sheer desperation to make things right with his father, not because he could simply afford that price,” Kagome added in, making Lucy slump even further.

“And then to find out they’re not even wealthy?” Lucy lamented. “They were just renting that house so everyone would think they were rich! It’s not like it would have mattered, we would have taken the job either way. Speaking of, though,” Lucy said straightening up and turning to Natsu, “the house – how did you know that it wasn’t even theirs? And Kagome, you didn’t even look surprised. I mean, granted, you _never_ really look surprised, but you didn’t even have your ‘not surprised’ look of surprise, you know? It was like you already knew as well,” Lucy struggled to explain.

“That’s because I did,” Kagome said simply.

“Yeah, it was easy,” Natsu commented. “It smelled like someone else’s house – pretty obvious, really.”

“There was also the fact that a place that large would have at least a few servants, but Kaby and his wife were the only two there. All the other scents were stale,” Kagome chipped in.

“My teammates are all animals,” Lucy bemoaned. Kagome hid a smirk – Lucy had _no_ idea. “Still, that was a pretty interesting mission. And that book was _amazing_ ,” Lucy gushed, starting to get lost in the clouds.

“I’ve got you figured out,” Natsu brought Lucy back to earth. “All those papers I found on your desk? You’re writing a novel, aren’t you?”

“Eek! Promise you won’t tell anyone about that!” Lucy cried, face as red as a tomato.

“Why not?” Happy asked.

“Because I’m a horrible writer!” Lucy buried her face in her hands in embarrassment. “If anyone ever read my stuff I’d die of embarrassment!”

“Don’t worry, nobody’s going to read it,” Natsu failed to reassure Lucy.

“Not until you’re ready, anyway,” Kagome quickly came to the rescue. “And when they do, I’m sure they’ll love it. You should have a little more faith in yourself.”

Lucy looked dubious but made no other comment on the subject and the group walked in peaceful silence for a while. 

Soon, however, their shortcut through the forest led them to a rather swampy looking area that Lucy refused to walk through herself, so she summoned Horologium. Kagome hopped on a transformed Kirara and took to the skies while Natsu just waded through the murky, thigh-high water.

“ _I don’t know about this, guys. Are you sure we’re going the right way?_ she asks,” Horologium parroted.

“Happy says this is the way home so this is the way we’re going, is what I answer,” Natsu snarked somewhat moodily.

“Have some faith,” Happy called from where he was clinging to Natsu’s hair. “I’m a cat, I have a great sense of smell! My nose will lead us home.”

“ _It’s_ _dogs that have great noses. And what does smell have to do with direction?_ she asks quite hotly,” Horologium translated.

“Each city and town, and even area of land, all have their own unique scent,” Kagome explained from above, distracting her two human companions from their slightly cranky moods. “With a keen enough nose, and if you know the land well enough, you can tell exactly where you are by scent alone. While it’s true that a cat’s nose isn’t as strong as a dog’s, Happy is right that this is the fastest way to Magnolia.”

“See?” Happy said smugly as they finally made it back to dry land. Kirara landed back on the ground and Kagome slid off, scooping the now-smaller cat up into her arms after the last of the flames had disappeared. Lucy, on the other hand, stayed inside Horologium, claiming that her legs were tired.

A rustling in the bushes ahead of them caught all of their attention and Kagome cocked her head in thought, feeling that the aura was somewhat familiar.

“Hey, isn’t that a member of… and, never mind,” Kagome sighed as Natsu leapt forward before Kagome could finish saying she thought it was someone from Fairy Tail.

“Do you always have to fight?” Lucy despaired from within Horologium while Kagome sighed in resignation. She did raise an eyebrow, though, when she realised it was Fairy Tail’s resident stripper, who was once again down to just his underwear.

While the two boys swapped some rather childish insults, Kagome’s eyes turned faintly nostalgic. The scene before her reminded her strongly of Inuyasha and Koga’s many interactions.

Eventually, just like with Koga and Inuyasha, the fight started to wind down and the girls were able to interject some actual conversation, discovering the stripper’s name was Gray and he was also on his way back to Magnolia from a job.

“Whatever, why don’t you just go on home already,” Natsu interrupted childishly.

“Fine, I will,” Gray retorted. “And unless you want trouble, you should, too. Erza is due back any time now.”

Kagome looked over at Natsu curiously as he went white in fear, wondering at the cause.

 _“The_ Erza?” Lucy asked.

“Yep, she’s the most powerful woman in all of Fairy Tail,” Happy confirmed.

“Oh, I can’t wait to meet her,” Lucy started to fangirl. “But, you know, I’ve never even seen a picture of her in Sorcerer Weekly or anything. What’s she like?”

“Scary,” was the unanimous response from Gray, Natsu and Happy.

“Wild animal,” “A vile beast,” “More like a full-on monster!” the boys continued.

“One thing we can all agree on is that she is definitely that scary, well maybe a little scarier,” Gray concluded.

“Yeah, she can pretty much destroy a whole mountain with a single kick!” Natsu added on.

“What? I guarantee Erza can take down at least three mountains with a single kick,” Gray refuted.

“You don’t need to exaggerate like that, Gray, it’s more like two,” interjected Happy.

“You know guys, even if she’s only able to kick down a single mountain, that’s still scary,” Lucy said despondently, her previous enthusiasm at meeting the famous wizard gone.

“Like I said, we should all get back soon,” Gray reiterated.

“Not much point in that right now,” Kagome said from where she had mostly been quietly listening to the conversation with a raised eyebrow. “It’s almost dark. You may as well camp with us and we’ll all head back tomorrow.”

“Do you girls even have any camping equipment?” Gray asked dubiously. “You’re not carrying any bags or anything, so unless you’re planning on squeezing in with Natsu (not that I recommend it, the flame brain), then…”

Kagome just smirked at him before touching a hand to her wrist and pulling out two sleeping bags, much to Gray’s shock. “I think we’ll be fine,” Kagome said mildly, the twinkle in her eye belying her innocent expression.

* * *

Not long later, sleeping bags had been set up, a fire had been started courtesy of Natsu, Gray’s clothes had been found, and some fish Kagome and Kirara had quickly caught were roasting on sticks around the fire for dinner. All in all, it was quite a cosy little campsite.

“So, I saw you girls when you arrived at the guild, but we never really introduced ourselves. The name’s Gray Fullbuster, I’m an Ice-Make wizard,” Gray started off the conversation, ignoring Natsu where he sat on the opposite side of the fire in the hope of avoiding another fight.

“My name’s Lucy and I’m a Celestial wizard,” Lucy smiled at her guildmate.

“I’m Kagome, and this is my companion, Kirara. I’m an Illusionist,” Kagome introduced, taking Gray slightly off-guard.

“Illusions?” he asked, confused. “I thought you used Requip magic when I saw you pull out those sleeping bags. So how did that work?”

“Ah, well, officially I’m an Illusionist, but I have a few other tricks and abilities as well,” Kagome began to explain, pushing back her sleeve to show Gray her bracelet. “This is one of them. It’s an enchanted bracelet. If I infuse an object with my magic power, I can turn it into a little charm on my bracelet. A little bit of magic applied to the charm turns it back. It allows me to carry a whole heap of stuff around with me all the time without being burdened by any luggage or anything. For the most part, I use it to keep my weapons on hand.” She gestured at a cluster of charms that, now that Gray looked closer, where indeed in the shape of various weapons. He could see swords, daggers, a bow and arrow, some kind of spear or staff, and was that a boomerang? “I also use it to store anything I think I might need in a pinch, like medical supplies, a change of clothes, or camping equipment. As long as it isn’t a living being, or something perishable, like food, then I can store anything on here.”

“That’s certainly useful,” Gray complimented. “I’ve never heard of anything like that before. Where did you get it?”

“Ah, it was a gift from my teacher, a long time ago.” Kagome’s voice was nostalgic and slightly melancholy.

“Did something happen to them?” Gray asked cautiously, knowing the pain of losing a beloved mentor.

“They had to go away somewhere,” Kagome said enigmatically. “Somewhere where I cannot follow, at least not now. Maybe one day I will see them again. Who knows? But for now, I have the books and scrolls my teacher left me to continue my training, so I am alright.”

Gray wasn’t sure he completely believed that last statement, but he knew when it was time to let a sensitive subject drop, so he smoothly changed the subject. “Well, they definitely left you an impressive gift. I wonder what kind of magic was used to create an enchantment like that. Do you know?”

“My teacher made it,” Kagome revealed. “It’s actually extremely high-level illusion magic. True transformation is considered to be the pinnacle of illusion magic – at least the way my teacher and I do it.”

“True transformation?” Lucy asked from where she had been quietly listening, confused about what Kagome meant.

“It’s… kind of hard to explain,” Kagome hedged, handing out the now-cooked fish to everyone to eat while she gathered her thoughts. “You see, illusions have different levels of depth. That illusion I cast on Plue when I made him look like Happy was an optical illusion. It had one layer only, fooling only the eyes. If he had made any noise, he still would have sounded like Plue, revealing the illusion. I can cast other single-layer illusions to fool the other senses as well. Like, making my voice sound like somebody else’s, or make it sound like it’s coming from a different location altogether, or disguising something’s scent, or making something feel heavier than it is.

“Then there are multi-layered illusions, where I fool several senses at once. If, for example, I cast an illusion on Lucy that made her look like Natsu and changed her voice to match, that would be a two-layer illusion, tricking both the eyes and ears. If you were to reach out and touch her, however, her hand would still _feel_ like Lucy’s, not Natsu’s. Another example would be the illusion I used earlier today where I made it look like I was wearing a maid’s uniform. I was deceiving the eyes, obviously, but I was also deceiving a person’s sense of touch as well, as it felt like I was wearing form-fitting sleeves instead of the ones I do now. Even though all that fabric was still actually there, no one could feel or see it, although they might have been able to hear it rustling if they listened carefully.

“The more in-depth the illusion, the more senses it fools, the harder it becomes, until one reaches the stage of true transformation – where _all_ of the senses are so completely and utterly fooled that for all intents and purposes the object literally becomes something else. It’s an incredibly difficult trick to master, as there are a lot of factors one must take into consideration when casting such an illusion. I haven’t quite reached that stage yet, but I’ve heard that one common difficulty people have had when trying to true-illusion themselves as another is getting their shadow to match. They will have every other detail perfect, but a sharp patch of sunlight would be all it takes to reveal them.”

Natsu looked a little bit lost at the explanation, his brain probably still stuck trying to picture Lucy illusioned as him, but Gray and Lucy had been following along avidly and both looked really impressed.

“Wow, Kagome,” Lucy breathed. “I thought illusions were just those optical tricks you first mentioned. I had no idea you could do all that with them.”

“Sounds pretty cool,” Gray agreed, “and kind of intimidating when you think of all the possible applications of such a skill. When you completely master your magic, you’re going to be one hell of an opponent to beat. You’re going to have whoever you’re fighting completely unable to believe any of their own senses.”

Kagome simply gave him a very foxy smile with a little more teeth than was comfortable, intimidating Gray just the slightest bit. “Thank you for the compliment,” she grinned before her expression smoothed into something more pleasant for a campfire amongst friends. “Now, if you don’t mind me asking,” she started cautiously with a pointed look down, “why do you keep taking off your clothes?”

“What?” Gray asked before looking down to find himself once more down to just his underwear. “When did that happen?!” Scrambling to find his clothes again, Gray apologised to the two girls. “Sorry, sorry, I don’t mean to do it, I swear! It’s just, when I was learning how to use my Ice-Make magic, my master said I first had to understand my element. She used to make me strip and then have me train out in the snow, and it just sort of became a subconscious habit to take off my clothes.”

“Oh, so that’s why you do that,” Lucy realised. “I must admit, while I’m still not exactly _pleased_ with the habit, I’m glad _that_ is the reason behind it.”

“While it is definitely a… _unique_ method,” Kagome said diplomatically, “I must admit it actually does make a fair bit of sense.”

“Pshh,” snorted Natsu, finally joining the conversation now that it had moved to something he could understand – Gray and his bad habit. “He’s still a stripping ice princess.”

“What was that, you flame brain retard?” Gray asked, immediately rising to Natsu’s taunt.

While the boys began to squabble, Lucy smothered a yawn, alerting Kagome to how late it had gotten. Moving quietly, Kagome tidied up the camp for the night, banking the fire and setting up a few invisible barriers with some pre-charged ofuda to protect them while they were all asleep. She then looked at the bickering duo and came to the conclusion that they weren’t going to stop any time soon and that she would have to interfere.

“ _Boys_ ,” she interjected politely but quite firmly. “While I’m sure that you both have some truly impressive insults waiting to be hurled at each other, it is quite late and if we wish to beat this ‘Erza’ back to the guild then we will require an early start tomorrow. As such, I recommend that you save them for later while we all get some sleep.”

While the boys looked like they had listened to her words, particularly when she mentioned the dreaded Erza, they still looked as if they half-wished to continue the fight.

“I am also not above illusioning those who annoy me into frilly pink dresses in front of the entire guild in retaliation,” Kagome added mildly, causing Lucy to snicker.

The boys were amazingly well behaved after that and the group were soon peacefully asleep.

* * *

The next morning, the group set out once more for Magnolia and the Fairy Tail guild hall. The boys had started yet another argument when a sudden explosion knocked them all off their feet and engulfed the group in smoke and flying dirt.

When the air cleared, it was to see that Happy and Kirara were no longer with them.

“Happy!” “Kirara!” their respective partners instantly cried.

Scrambling to their feet, the four instantly took off after their missing companions, Natsu and Kagome in the lead. Skidding to a halt at the top of a small cliff, the group looked down to see Happy and Kirara tied to a stick and hanging over a ready-to-light fire. A group of wizards surrounded them.

“Hold it right there!” Natsu shouted, causing the wizards to stop and look towards them before they could actually light the fire.

“Happy! Kirara!” Lucy called out.

“Give them back!” Kagome snarled, a growl beginning to build in her throat as she glared at the wizards in true anger.

“Those are our friends you’re trying to roast there,” Natsu warned, cracking his knuckles. “Sorry, but you’re going to have to make other plans for dinner!”

“You’re all wizards, aren’t you? What guild are you with?” Gray tried to interrogate

“I’m not telling,” the presumed-leader of the wizards sneered. “Get them!”

The group of wizards then left the cats behind as they started charging towards the four standing on the cliff.

“Gray, let’s do this,” Natsu said to his rival.

“Alright, but don’t go telling me what to do,” Gray begrudgingly agreed before the two boys jumped down to meet their opponents halfway.

“Lucy, free Kirara and Happy!” Kagome commanded before also joining the fray.

While Natsu was trapped in a giant ball of sand by the wizard’s leader, Gray and Kagome took on the rest of the group. Kagome was furious about Kirara almost being taken from her and so was only holding back enough to not kill anyone, knocking out all of her opponents with a single blow. She idly noted that Gray was a quite capable fighter, not even needing to use his magic to help him, although he also managed to lose his clothes even while mid-fight.

“Are you actually growling?” Gray asked his fighting companion after the wizards were all taken care of and they were just waiting for Natsu to finish with the leader.

Kagome’s fingers flexed oddly before she forcefully cut off her growl and rushed over to Kirara, ignoring Gray’s question. Her shoulders immediately lost their remaining tension as soon as the cream coloured cat was back in her arms.

Gray cast on odd look at the girl’s back, but let the matter be, turning instead to help Natsu tie up the defeated wizards.

“L-Lulla…” one of the wizards mumbled, half-conscious. “Lulla…b-”

“Lullaby?” Lucy asked, trying to guess what the wizard was trying to say.

Before they could do anything else, however, a black shadow came rushing into the clearing. Lucy, Natsu and Gray were instantly knocked flying, and Kagome quickly shielded Kirara in her arms, snapping up a barrier around herself. When the dust settled, the captured wizards were gone.

“What was that?” Lucy quaked, shaken by the sudden attack.

“ _Who_ was that?” Natsu corrected.

“Well, whoever it was, they’re fast,” Gray observed. “I can’t even sense their presence anymore.”

“Are you all ok?” Kagome asked, dropping her barrier and approaching the others.

“We’re fine, Kagome,” Lucy promised.

“But, what does this mean?” Natsu wondered.


End file.
